1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to scented paints and to paint scenting additive mixtures as well as to processes for producing scented paint products. More particularly, the invention relates to additive mixtures for incorporation into unscented paints to produce scented paints which provide pleasant and long-lasting fragrance or aroma in ambient surroundings where the paints are applied and to the methods for producing scented paints employing such scenting additive mixtures.
2. Description of Related Art
There are many areas in a typical household or business environment such as in basements, kitchens, and rooms that have not been used for long periods of time or that are used to store or manufacture malodorous products where odor control is an important and desirable consideration. However, it is frequently very difficult to eliminate these odors or to modify the perception of the malodor in such spaces so that the perceived scent becomes acceptable or pleasant. For example, a mildew odor in a basement is pernicious and its perception is very difficult to eliminate or overcome with fragrance alone. Cleaning agents such as sodium hypochlorite or quaternary ammonium compounds may be effective to some degree if used in high enough concentrations.
Room deodorants, such as aerosols, stick-ups, candles, pomanders and the like may help to modify the perception of malodor but none of these forms of scenting are long lasting and in many cases they do not deliver sufficient fragrance to effectively overcome the prevalent malodors.
It has been known heretofore that paints can be somewhat effective in sealing off malodors but it has been recognized that the paints themselves frequently impart unpleasant odors and, even if they do contain a fragrance that has been added by the manufacturer, the level is so low that the fragrance is only effective to mask the inherent malodor of the paints and not to render the surroundings more pleasant in aroma over an extended period of time. That is, the fragrances have not been incorporated in the paints at sufficiently high concentration levels to enable modification and/or elimination of the perception of malodors in the ambient environment for an extended period of time after the paint has been applied and dried on the painted surface.
Thus, the general concept of adding fragrances to paints during the paint formulation process has been known heretofore. However, scented paints have been produced, heretofore, in a conventional manner by mixing a paint pigment with a standard paint solvent and adding a limited quantity of a fragrance or scenting agent thereto. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,792 (the '792 patent) describes a scented paint composition and a method of manufacturing such scented paint by mixing a paint pigment with a paint solvent and then adding a masking agent such as vanilla extract or vanillin, an inducing agent such as a formulated soap and a scent extract typically selected to match the color of the pigment. The masking agent is incorporated into the paint composition in an amount selected to minimize the natural scent of the paint to the greatest degree possible, preferably, at a concentration of between 0.03% and 0.25% of the desired volume. The preferred concentrations of the inducing agent and scent extract are comparable to the concentrations of the masking agent, each having a desired concentration of between 0.03% and 0.25% of the completed paint composition.
As described in the '792 patent, the imparted scent from the paint releases gradually while the paint remains in its liquid state so that an aesthetically pleasing scent is exhibited while the paint is being applied and thereafter, at least until the paint dries or cures on a painted surface. Thus, the predominant function of prior conventionally formulated paint compositions such as those described in the '792 patent was to decorate the environment and to mask the immediate obnoxious odor normally accompanying a freshly painted room and not to eliminate the perception of malodors or to impart a pleasant aroma in the ambient painted surroundings over an extended period of time.
Accordingly, since the primary purpose of introducing fragrance additives into prior art scented paints has been to impart aroma to the paint and not to the surrounding area, the concentration of fragrance ingredients incorporated in the paints has been low (typically, in a range of about 0.1 to about 0.3% by weight). In view of the low concentration level of the fragrance ingredients in these paints, the stability of the dispersions of the fragrances therein did not have to be high. In many instances, the amount of solvent in the paint was sufficient to dissolve the limited quantity of fragrance ingredients. In other instances, the viscosity of the prior scented paint compositions was sufficiently high so that even if the fragrance ingredients were insoluble, their rate of separation was quite slow so that the resulting composition was suitably stable without forming a true dispersion of the fragrance in the paints.
However, none of the prior scented paint compositions had a sufficiently high concentration of fragrance ingredients dispersed therein to enable immediate elimination of malodors in an environment and to achieve long term dispersion and stability of a sufficiently high level of fragrance in the paint so as to maintain enhanced aroma over a long period of time.
Furthermore, it should be recognized that prior scented paints were produced as pre-formulated, ready-to use compositions for supply to distributors and retail outlets. These pre-formulated paints presented significant inventory problems since they were not capable of being custom blended, for example, at the point of purchase or use to enable any desired fragrance or amount of fragrance to be selected and incorporated into any of a variety of different types of paints such as water based, oil based, alkyd based paints and the like at the option of the supplier and/or the consumer. Therefore, distributors and retailers were previously required to stock an extensive inventory of scented paints so that an array of paint colors and scents for each of a variety of paint types would be available at any given time to accommodate consumer demands.
Accordingly, there has existed a continuing and long felt need for an additive mixture that can be introduced into any type of pre-formulated conventional unscented paints such as water based, latex based, oil based, alkyd based paints and the like (including, but not limited to, high solids alkyds, hyperbranched alkyds, interpenetrating networks, fast drying enamels, emulsified alkyds, vinyl-acrylic latex, vinyl-vinyl branched polymers, styrene-acrylic emulsions, styrene-maleic anhydride polymers, acrylic-modified polymers and associative polymers) to produce a scented paint that eliminates malodors in an environment and achieves long lasting dispersion and stability of a sufficiently high level of fragrance therein to maintain an enhanced aroma in the environment over an extended period of time. The commercial advantages of these mixtures, among others, is that they enable paint suppliers and retailers to stock significantly reduced inventories of paints and, also, provides producers, consumers and users with a readily available option of custom blending the paints to a desired fragrance level and with a desired correspondence between color and scent, if desired.
In view of the foregoing, it is a general object of the present invention to provide paint scenting mixtures for incorporation into paint compositions that will be stable in the paints and that will impart sufficient aroma to the paint so that when the paint is applied in a normal manner in an ambient surrounding any offensive malodors will be substantially reduced and/or eliminated and a long lasting pleasant aroma will permeate in such surrounding.
Another general object is to provide processes for producing scented paints which impart pleasant and long-lasting fragrance or aroma in ambient surroundings in which they are applied by introducing a paint scenting mixture therein.
Another object is to provide paints having paint scenting mixtures incorporated therein to provide scented paints for use in decorating an environment and to reduce and/or eliminate the perception of malodors and/or to impart a pleasant aroma in the ambient painted surroundings over an extended period of time. These paints may optionally be formulated to further provide other desirable characteristics in the paints such as mildew resistance, anti-bacterial or anti-microbial activity, a glittery appearance and the like, if desired.
A further significant object is to provide paint scenting mixtures for incorporation into conventionally produced paint compositions to provide paints which contain relatively high concentrations of fragrance material that will remain distributed evenly throughout the paint and will not separate out in the container, while the paint is being applied or while the paint is drying or curing and for an extended period thereafter.
A still further important object is to provide paint scenting mixtures for incorporating fragrance components into any type of paint including water based, latex based, oil based, alkyd based paint compositions and the like (including, but not limited to, high solids alkyds, hyperbranched alkyds, interpenetrating networks, fast drying enamels, emulsified alkyds, vinyl-acrylic latex, vinyl-vinyl branched polymers, styrene-acrylic emulsions, styrene-maleic anhydride polymers, acrylic-modified polymers and associative polymers) in order to produce stable, long lasting dispersions of the fragrance materials in any of the variety of paint types.
Yet another significant object is to provide paint scenting mixtures for custom blending into any type of paint during production or at a point of purchase or use whereby any selected fragrance can be incorporated into any of a variety of different types of paints to provide paints having stable dispersions of fragrance materials therein with the fragrance materials soluble and stable in any selected type of paint. Such paint mixtures are advantageous to a paint distributor or retailer since the distributor or retailer can stock only a basic number of unscented paint compositions of each paint type and can custom blend the paints to produce any desired fragrance in any desired color of any type of paint.
These and other objects will become apparent hereinafter to those skilled in the art.